Young Artists, guitarist end season on a high note

May 11, 2004|By Michael Cameron, Special to the Tribune.

May is the month when many musical groups end their seasons, and in some cases take a breather before resuming a summer schedule. For the many fine student orchestras in the Chicago area, these finales carry a special significance. The ensembles rehearse evenings and weekends, honing their skills for what many hope will be professional musical careers.

Midwest Young Artists is one such group, and under music director Allan Dennis it is celebrating 10 years of lively music-making. This organization has become one-stop shopping for musical training, with multiple orchestras, chamber groups (some of which have earned national honors), choruses, jazz ensembles and theory classes under one roof at Ft. Sheridan.

The appearance of master guitarist Pepe Romero lent an air of palpable excitement to Saturday's proceedings at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, witnessed by a packed house of enthusiastic supporters. Romero captivated audience and students alike with two solo works and that warhorse of guitar concertos, the "Concierto de Aranjuez" of Joaquin Rodrigo.

Francisco Tarrega's "Recuerdas del Alhambra" was a masterful exhibition of the melodic possibilities of the instrument, and "Fantasia" by Romero's father Celedonio celebrated the guitar's flamenco heritage.

One cannot imagine a more authoritative and idiomatic performance of the concerto. Dennis kept his students discretely underneath Romero, and cellist Courtney Sharp contributed a lush and lyrical solo passage in the first movement. English horn player Rachel Steinhorn beautifully introduced one of the 20th Century's most famous melodies in the second movement. Romero's cadenza later in the movement was a highlight of the evening--a beautifully embroidered version of the haunting tune.

Solo winds and ensemble precision tend to be the weak spots of student groups, and this later department could have been disastrous in a Spanish-themed concert. Emmanuel Chabrier's "Espana" took a few measures to gel but soon coalesced into a vibrant, incisive account.

Luciano Berio's rarely performed "Ritirata notturna di Madrid" came off as a surprisingly delightful confection.

Manuel de Falla's "The Three-Cornered Hat" opened with a spirited bounce, and in the second movement the strings dug aggressively into their repeated down-bows, followed by a spirited acceleration to the conclusion of the second movement. The finale featured precise changes of tempo executed with an admirable confidence that belied the musicians' tender years.